Leftist candidate Iván Cepeda has conceded defeat in Colombia’s presidential race, three days after a record number of Colombians cast their votes.
Preliminary results released hours after polls closed showed that Cepeda was defeated by his opponent, right-wing businessman Abelardo de la Espriella, by less than one percentage point.
Cepeda originally said he would wait for the legally binding final count – which is still ongoing – but announced on Wednesday that he had “decided to accept the result”.
He criticized US President Donald Trump for his support of de la Asprilla.
“We condemn the open and unjustified foreign interference in Colombia’s internal affairs, especially the interference of President Donald Trump,” he told reporters.
Trump praised de la Asprilla after his victory in the first round of the election and labeled Cepeda a “radical left-wing Marxist”.
After de la Espriella defeated Cepeda in the run-off, Trump said he won “handily”, even though his lead of 0.96 percentage points was the smallest victory for a presidential candidate in recent Colombian history.
Referring to the deep polarization in the country, Cepeda said he “decided to accept this as an act of democratic responsibility; I am doing this to contribute to coexistence, peace and dialogue among the Colombian people.”
As the second-place candidate, he is entitled to a seat in the Senate, where he said he would exercise “democratic, alert and constructive opposition”.
Abelardo de la Espriella, who had threatened to “exterminate the left” during the campaign, also struck a cordial note during his victory speech, saying that those who think differently from him have nothing to fear.
De la Espriella has already established closer relations with the Trump administration since Sunday’s runoff than with outgoing President Gustavo Petro, who repeatedly clashed with his US counterpart.
Colombia’s president-elect said Tuesday he will accept his country’s invitation to join the “Shield of the Americas,” a U.S.-led coalition of Western Hemisphere countries created to combat criminal gangs and drug trafficking.
De la Espriella will be sworn in on August 7.
